Your Responsibility
by PrinRue
Summary: While out in the woods one day, five year old Hiccup comes across an injured bird. He takes it upon himself to nurse it back to health until it can return to the wild. But it turns out that letting go is the hardest part of all. Based on a deleted scene from THW; oneshot; FEELS!


**In The Hidden World, there are several deleted scenes, two of which are unused young Hiccup flashbacks. One of these is where Hiccup finds an injured bird and Stoick decides to let him take care of it. In his commentary, Dean DeBlois said they didn't use it because it would've given too much of the story away, but that it was one of his favorite scenes for how sweet it is. **

**If you watch the scene yourself, you'll see what he means. It certainly would've given too much away, but it's just too darn wholesome! So, I rewrote the original scene, and added all the events that followed! **

**Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

"Hi-ya! This one's a Monstrous Nightmare! Yah! And this one's a Deadly Nadder!"

Stoick smiled, watching his young son as he jumped through the forest, slicing at tree branches with his wooden sword.

The boy turned to face his father, a big smile on his face. "Not as deadly as me, though! Right, Dad?"

Stoick laughed. "Not nearly as monstrous, either." He watched as Hiccup leapt off a small rock ledge, his boots landing on the ground with a thud, before he continued waving the small sword through the air. Suddenly, though, he stopped, the weapon still raised. Then, he dropped his sword, falling to all fours and crawling over to something.

Stoick stepped up beside him to see what it was Hiccup was looking at. A small bird, probably just hatched from its egg, was moving painfully along the dirt, dragging its left wing.

"What's wrong with him, Dad?" Hiccup asked, looking up at his father. Stoick kneeled beside the small boy, looking wistfully at the injured creature.

He glanced up, where he could see a bird's nest perched on a branch. "Fell from its nest and broke its wing. Very sad, but these things happen, son." The man felt the perplexed look his boy was giving him. Stoick sighed. He supposed he'd have to teach Hiccup these things eventually. "The only right thing to do is to end its suffering." This was a tough lesson, but one that Berk's future chief would need to learn… just maybe not quite yet. Stoick, pushed Hiccup's shoulder, ushering him away. "Head on down the path."

Hiccup quickly turned back, tears in his eyes. "No, Dad!" The five year old glanced back at the bird. "Can't we help him? He's… little, like me," Hiccup sniffed, clearly trying not to cry. "Can't we help him get better?" The boy continued his sniffling, bringing his hands to his eyes.

Stoick looked over his son, his eyes softening. He then looked back down to the bird. The creature was tiny, and with its injury, it wouldn't survive long. Then again, that's what had been said about his own son. That Hiccup wouldn't make it through his first night, let alone five years. But here he was.

Something in Stoick broke, and he let his eyes refocus onto Hiccup's.

"Alright. Get me a twig."

The boy's expression flashed briefly in surprise before he whispered, "Okay." He quickly got to his feet, running to a fallen tree and snapping a twig off one of the branches. "Here."

Stoick took the twig from his son, pulling a loose thread from his cape. "Okay, now hold him, very carefully." Hiccup scooped the bird into his hands, holding it out toward his dad.

Stoick carefully pulled the bird's left wing out, finding the break, before tying the twig to the bone. "He's your responsibility now, son." The father gently closed Hiccup's hands around the animal. "You must feed him, and care for him, until he's able to fly free and return to the wild."

Hiccup pulled the bird closer, looking down at it. It shook itself, glancing up at him with its glassy black eyes. "I will, Dad." The boy smiled, meeting his father's gaze. "I promise."

{○}

"This is my house. You're gonna get to stay here until you're better," Hiccup said to the bird. Carefully, he climbed the stairs up to his bedroom, making sure not to jostle the creature too much. Once upstairs, he crawled into his bed, gently setting the bird onto his blanket. "My name is Hiccup, by the way. You're gonna need a name of your own, aren't you?" The boy looked over his bird, noting its black head, wings, and tail, and white belly. "Hmm. How 'bout… Shadow Wing. Or does that sound too much like a dragon name? Maybe just Shadow, then." The bird gave a little chirp, and Hiccup grinned. "I like it too. So that's what I'll call you." He held out a finger to Shadow, the little bird hopping closer. It pecked at his fingernail, looking up at him. "You're probably, hungry, aren't you? Must be hard to get food with your wing broken like that. I'll go get something for you to eat. Hold on."

Hiccup slid off his bed, hurrying back downstairs. He stopped in the main room, glad to find his dad still on his chair by the hearth. "Hey, Dad?"

"Do yeh need something, son?"

"Not me, but Shadow does. What can I give him to eat?"

"Hm. Well, birds normally eat little bugs out of the ground or small fish from the ocean. But I think yeh would be alright givin' him a piece of bread from the kitchen."

Hiccup nodded, finding the leftover rolls on the table. He grabbed one, then made his way back to where he'd left Shadow. He climbed onto the bed, sitting cross-legged next to the animal. "I know this isn't what you usually eat, but trust me, it's good." Hiccup tore a tiny piece of bread off. Shadow was small so he probably didn't eat that much… kind of like Hiccup. Slowly, he held out his hand, letting Shadow come to him. The bird tilted its head at the crumbs, then began pecking at them. Once he'd finished all of it, his beady eyes looked up expectantly. "Do you want more?" Hiccup tore another, slightly bigger piece off for him. This time, Shadow left a couple crumbs behind, which Hiccup took to mean he was done. He set the roll aside for later, then thought for a moment. "You probably need some water, too." He glanced around his room, his eyes coming to rest on a wooden cup on his desk. It was from last night, but the bird probably wouldn't mind. Hiccup grabbed the cup, thinking it was shallow enough for Shadow to get his head in. "Here."

He watched quietly, observing with wonder as his bird drank. It finally pulled back, making a squeak of hurt when its injured wing grazed the cup lip.

Hiccup frowned, feeling bad for it. "I'm sorry about your wing. But like Dad said, I'm gonna help you until you're better." He reached out, gently brushing his fingers over Shadow's feathers. "It's all gonna be okay."

{○}

Weeks passed, and every day, Hiccup never let his attention for Shadow waver. Thus, every day, Shadow got a little stronger, and a little more energetic. He began trying to fly around the house, and Stoick helped Hiccup remove the splint from his wing. He was a bit of a sloppy flyer at first, with the muscles in his left wing having been unused for so long, but soon, Shadow was happily flapping all over the hut.

Finally, a month after the Haddocks had saved him, Stoick declared he was strong enough to go back into the wild.

"Does he really have to go?" Hiccup asked, his voice sounding even smaller than normal.

"His wing is all healed up now. It's what's best for him, son."

"But… but he likes it here. He likes _me_." The young boy gazed down at Shadow, who had come to enjoy perching on his wrist.

"I know he does. But, Hiccup, no matter how much he likes you and likes living here, this just isn't where he belongs. It's only the right thing teh do, for us to let him return teh the wild, and be with the other birds."

"But what if he gets hurt again? What if he needs us?"

"He's going to be okay, Hiccup. It's time to let him go." Stoick kneeled down, giving his son a hug.

"I'm gonna miss him," Hiccup said, sniffling.

"And that's okay. It's okay to miss him." The father pulled back, smiling bittersweetly. "It's our memories that keep those we let go close."

Hiccup sighed, stepping out of the house. Once on the front stair, he gave Shadow one last scratch, before holding out his arm. The bird took to the air, chirping as he flew. And Hiccup watched him until he could no longer see his black backside in the sky.

{○}

Hiccup jumped over another branch, landing softly on the other side. The nine year old smiled, taking in the familiar sounds and smells the woods of Raven Point offered. It was even better ever since his dad had started letting him explore on his own.

Hiccup stopped at a particularly interesting looking tree, pulling out the small leather book his father had given him to draw in. As he was sketching the roots, he noticed a small form by one of them.

As silently as he could, Hiccup walked over to it, so he could see what it was. It was a bird, all black except for its white belly. The boy crouched down, resting on his heels.

Then he noticed it. The slightly bent shape of the bird's left wing, healed from being broken. A small smile grew on Hiccup's face, and he watched the bird as it picked out blades of grass, presumably for a nest. After it had gathered enough, it turned, tilting its head at Hiccup for a few seconds, then leapt up, flying away.

Hiccup followed the bird's flight until he could no longer see it, before he too stood and continued his trek. "I'm glad you're doing well," he said, looking up toward the sky, hidden by foliage. "See you around… Shadow."

* * *

**The bird species I decided to reference for this fic is called a Little Auk. ****It nests on cliff sides by the ocean, and is common in Norway, all the way up into the Arctic circle ;)**

**Also, lol, Shadow Wings are an actual dragon species Hiccup names later in life **


End file.
